Mother Qi stared blankly at her daughter, who was crying out loud, holding her grandson and feeling a bit at a loss. She looked at her husband and said, "Are we just going to stand by and watch her mistreat Baobao?"
She also didn’t understand the Zhang family’s wicked old hag, who had been yearning for a grandson and finally got a great-grandson. Wasn’t she supposed to cherish and pamper him, wishing to give him all the best things in the world? But now, it seemed not to be the case; the old hag was more concerned about her step-grandchild, preferring her own grandson to eat less so that the step-grandchild could have the formula!
What kind of nonsense was this, who does that!
"Is Baobao only eating formula now?" Father Qi asked.
Qi Fenglian wiped away her tears and said, "He also eats porridge and meals, but everyone says that formula is high in nutrition."
"Nonsense, people need food like iron needs steel. The most nourishing thing is rice. Can the foreign devils’ stuff be better than our rice?" Father Qi glared at her and said, "Formula is a luxury item; it doesn’t necessarily raise a child to be healthy. In fact, in my opinion, it’s not as good as rice porridge. All the children in the countryside are raised tough, aren’t they?"
"Yes, yes, when you all were little, didn’t you also grow up eating sweet potatoes and porridge? And you were all raised to be strong and healthy," Mother Qi agreed.
Qi Fenglian’s face turned slightly red as she said, "When I went to Qing City, I forcibly weaned Baobao off breast milk, thinking about feeding him formula. I..."
She couldn’t continue.
After pulling out some tobacco, Father Qi rolled it in paper, licked the edge to seal it, and lit it with a match. He took a drag and said, "All in all, it’s really the in-laws who are not doing their duty. If formula isn’t filling, won’t rice mush and gruel be filling?"
Qi Fenglian’s eyes reddened again, filled with intense resentment mixed with a sense of helplessness.
"It’s really a sin, he’s their own grandson after all. I can’t believe that old hag and her family can do such things," Mother Qi was extremely angry.
"Enough, enough, don’t talk about that anymore," Father Qi frowned irritably at her and then turned to Qi Fenglian, "When you go back, you must speak nicely to your in-laws. And don’t be too fixated on that formula. The main thing should still be the gruel. Xiao Yun is grown up now; let her help look after the baby. She’s a good girl and surely won’t treat her own brother unfairly."
Qi Fenglian nodded and said, "Dad, Mom, I really regret it now. Why did I choose such a family in the first place?"
"The kids are already born; what’s the point in saying this now? When a problem arises, the only thing we can do is solve it. You want to earn money and take care of the children at the same time, where is there such an easy thing?" Father Qi sighed, "Fenglian, you have to know what’s good for you."
Qi Fenglian dabbed the corner of her eyes and said, "Dad, I know all that. If it wasn’t because I wanted to escape this crab cage, why would I bear to leave Baobao and the others behind? Just seeing Baobao sick and unclear, it’s like someone gouged out my heart. But if I don’t go, I guess my life would just stay the same forever."
It was to break out of that prison that she had the heart to be so ruthless.
Father Qi took another puff of his cigarette, his words on the tip of his tongue but he hesitated, and what he was about to say changed.
"You’ll have to talk to Jisheng about this. If he speaks up, it will be better than if you say it. Normally, just be generous, buy some nice food and useful things for your in-laws, give them some money. They surely won’t really neglect the two children, after all, they are their own grandchildren!" Father Qi said.
Qi Fenglian nodded and said, "Now Jisheng’s salary, all of it goes to his mother, and the expenses are all mine. Even so, she hasn’t taken good care of Baobao and the others. When they grow old one day, they better not expect us to beg them."
It was the suffering of her son that made her the most upset and uncontrollably angry. The money was given with the expectation that they’d take to heart raising the children, but upon returning home, what she saw was two skinny children.